Financial Firm Aims to Help Japanese Companies List on Thai Stock Exchange.

Byline: Nuntawun Polkuamdee

Dec. 5--Capital Nomura Securities will look to attract several Japanese firms to list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand next year, according to Suthep Peetakanont, president of the brokerage firm.

Of the 35 brokers on the SET, Capital Nomura Securities is the only one focused largely on Japanese clients as its primary niche.

Heavy competition in the securities field meant that firms had to specialise if they were to survive, said Mr Suthep, who also serves as chairman of the Association of Securities Companies,

He said seven or eight brokers focused largely on wholesale clients, while another four or five specialised in advisory and investment banking services, with the remainder primarily retail brokers.

Capital Nomura was the lead underwriter last year for Aeon Thana Sinsap, a consumer finance company with Japanese majority shareholders. Aeon has been a strong performer on the SET over the past year, and now trades at well above double its initial public offering price of 51 baht per share.

"We have not led many IPOs, but we are focussing on only good quality stocks to list on the SET," Mr Suthep said.